Full creator and star Nathan Fielder has since expressed his “frustration” with Paramount+, which has left many people wishing on a streaming star. The streaming service at one point pulled an episode before restoring it, citing “sensitivities” involving antisemitism. Our German’s better, apparently The German division of Paramount+ ignited widespread condemnation when it pulled the episode. In reply, Fielder explored the ramifications of this decision in an even more recent episode of his show.
Fielder, who is Jewish, has long been an ambassador for Holocaust awareness and education through his Summit Ice Apparel brand. He articulated his frustrations in a public letter to Paramount+. In this letter, he thanked them for all the work they had done together, with phrases like forever grateful and happy holidays. As much as he began pushing for increased transparency over the takedown of his material,
In a bold effort to tackle the challenge, Fielder brought in an actor to play the president of Paramount+ Germany. He dressed the actor in Nazi attire and staged their meeting in a war room setting, drawing parallels between this incident and historical events from World War II. This edgy, irresponsible but often hilarious recreation was meant to point out the ridiculousness he saw in the Paramount+ decision-making process.
Fielder’s episode focused on the larger cultural meanings of the removal. He argued that the German division’s actions served as a model or precedent for the oppression of other countries. This resulted in additional withdrawals from the episode in multiple areas. This ripple effect ignited debate on the line between censorship and editorial freedom and the shifting power dynamics in global media.
During this episode, Fielder conducted a search on Paramount+ for terms related to antisemitism, such as “Nazi” and “Hitler.” He reported puzzling results that included titles like “The Amazing Race” and “Minari,” which seemed unrelated to his query. Further, when we searched for “Hitler,” our search results included educational documentaries like “Hitler’s Riches” and “The Day Hitler Died.” In stark contrast, there was only a single entry for “Judaism” on the platform—Spotlights: A Showtime Short Film Series.
Paramount+’s decision to take the episode down sparked a short-lived but fiery content moderation policy debate. Artists and communities fear the direction these policies could take their artistic expression. Fielder’s novel approach to tackling the issue still turned some heads. His provocative techniques—and their results—drew passionate conversations on the limits of free speech in media.
Fielder originally debuted the concept of Summit Ice Apparel on the second episode of “Nathan for You” back in 2015. The brand was built with the intent of creating strong, mission-driven brand awareness to further educate audiences about the Holocaust and its history. By embedding his advocacy within the enjoyable vehicle of entertainment, Fielder has kept asking audiences to confront serious issues.
“The Rehearsal,” which airs on Sundays at 10:30 p.m. on Max following “The Righteous Gemstones” on HBO, has garnered critical acclaim for its innovative format and thought-provoking content. The recent development adds to the show’s reputation. Fielder deftly stitches an emotional history, big themes, a magical realism, and humor into a tight 38 minutes.
